Palmdale Raid
Summary: (May 2028) The Decepticons raid the Boeing space tile fabrication plant in Palmdale, California! The Autobots respond in a big way. Soundwave says, "Excellent, Geo. I read your posting. You appear to understand quite well what is required for this operation. However, the final decision, as always, will be made by Lord Galvatron." Geo says, "I understand, Soundwave. I simply saw an opportunity we could potentially exploit, and applied myself." Galvatron says, "Given that we have already had hostile dealings with the Protectorate of Nations, getting them to believe that we wish for an alliance with them will be a hard task.� No doubt, Madame General Briar will want Airwolf to be the liaison... although that would conflict with her role as an impartial observer." Scrapper transmits, via code to thwart twits like Red Alert, "Eceptionsday, eway avehay ahay issionmay otay eaquireray energonhay." Geo says, "I would agree; however, I am a lesser-known Decepticon, publically. I am also built with a large amount of human knowledge, as far as interpersonal relationships and discussion. I believe that, given the opportunity to interviewwith Madame General Briar, I could convince her of such a course of action. An obfuscated alliance wit hthe Decepticons. As long as we can keep the activities on Earth to a minimal, outside of our own territories." Buzzsaw says, "Is that supposed to be some sort of joke Scrapper?" Geo says, "I also believe that I would make a good liaison simply for the fact that, as a cassettecon, I am unassuming and vastly underpowered, in regards to combat capabilities. It would be a gesture that the Protectorate may take as a notion that we are serious in our application of this treaty." Scrapper hmms and considers his options. "I'll go with 'yes' for now. At any rate, our energon supplies are getting dangerously low, and I aim to fix this." Soundwave says, "I spoke to her recently, Lord. She appeared to be receptive to the notion of a Decepticon representative. She also appeared to accept my explanation that Geo would more accurately represent a more... "pure" Decepticon point-of-view. Further, despite hostilities, I believe she is a pragmatic, even ruthless woman." Galvatron says, "Hmm... and yet she is willing to assume all of this without my presence?� I would have thought she would have wanted me present to see that I was serious about this as well." Buzzsaw says, "Well there are a number of reasonably unsecured sites available to us at this point, do you have somewhere specific in mind?" Geo says, "I simply did not wish to impose upon your already-important scheduling with the matter of this plan; it is a fact that, were you present for the discussions with General Briar and vocally and visibly backing the plan, it would be a much more potent force." Soundwave says, "Perhaps we can arrange for you to accompany Geo at our first meeting with the Protectorate, my Lord, and show them that you are entrusting this task to her?" Geo says, "Deining that you approve the plan first, Mighty Galvatron." Galvatron says, "Indeed.� Consider it approved." Sky above New Crystal City The air above the island is rough and turbulent, but it does little to hide what lies below. Instead of the rocky islands typical of this region of the Pacific, there is a tall silver volcano overlooking what looks like the frosty blue, skeletal bones of an enormous metallic fish, including ribs, a "skull", and a massive mouth rimmed by huge, jagged metal teeth. It looks large enough to fit even a cityformer between its ribs. Geo says, "... my thanks, Mighty Galvatron. I shall endeavor to the best ends in this venture." Fusillade says, "Urm... limited action on Earth, huh?" Scrapper says, "Yes." Fusillade says, "Oh, huh." Scrapper Responds to Buzzsaw, "Not particularly." Galvatron says, "Limited only when it concerns Protectorate territory. As far as UN territory is concerned... have a field day." Fusillade says, "So... where's the Protectorate again?" Galvatron says, "Mostly Asia, at present... though I doubt they will remain content to sit there for long, particularly given their recent movement into China." Soundwave says, "Asia, Africa, Indonesia, India, and Russia have pulled their support for the UN, according to a news report regarding the attack on the UN building." Scrapper chuckles, "Stupid fleshbags. Always getting into one civil war or another." Geo says, "Lord Galvatron; Soundwave." Geo says, "I shall composed a missive ot Madame General Briar, explaining that we wish to meet and why we wish to meet." Galvatron says, "Very well, Geo." Fusillade says, "Anyone interested in not pulling that 'I'm not in your division, I don't have to listen' slag, meet me in the air over New Crystal City." Scrapper says, "Say 'hello' to Briar for me, Geo." Buzzsaw says, "I don't know why you would think that uttering such is necessary Fusillade?" Geo says, "Of course, Scrapper." Fusillade says, "C'mere and find out." Lazily circling a half-click over the main air traffic patterns over the silvery skeleton of New Crystal City, Fusillade waits. The bomber's wings are swept forward, and mindful of the recent surviellance issues with Blaster and Red Alert, she's fallen back on jabs and cryptic banter to lure out a potential raiding party. Payloader soars into view awkwardly due to his being a payloader and not a jet. The Constructicon wobbles as it flies in a loose circle round and round. Scrapper, for his part, isn't big on ranks and divisions to begin with, and so doesn't seem to have any problem with following just about anyone into battle so long as they seem to know what they're doing. "You have a target in mind, Fusillade?" he asks. What's that green jet? Is it an animation error? A miscolored Comcast perhaps? No.. no, it appears to be a MiG of some kind.. so maybe Blitzwing had a repaint? No.. it's not him either.. it's.. yes, it's Fulcrum! Wow! What's he doing in the foreground of this scene? Who can say! But whatever the reason, the Russian jet is rising from the city below to take up a holding pattern near his comrades. Soundwave flies up after the group, probably the last one here. Coming a hovering halt high up in the sky, he glances around at all the jets flying about. A good strike force, so far. As the MSE High Commander looms into view, Fusillade mmms a bit at the lumbering chartreuse mass. With a flick of one nose canard, she practically coos out, "Well, I've been struck by a... twinge of nostalgia, you would say. The Terran company Rockwell Aerospace, before it was bought Boeing, was responsible for my alt mode's creation." Well, she's self-absorbed enough to dig for THAT kind of information. "Turns out they have materials for a project that Cyclonus had handed off to a few of the Sweeps and myself. In this case, ceramic tiles for orbital reentry. They have a fabrication facility in Palmdale, California. It'll be RIGHT under the EDC's nose, so we get extra bonus points in terms of how... lively our opposition will be." At the sight of the olive and steel aircraft, she barrel-rolls. Inside the communications officer a tape stirs to life, preparing itself to protect it's home and commander. Payloader hmms as he wobbles and listens to Fusillade, "Alright, that's fine with me." The Constructicon leaves the target picking to DCI and Military Operations most of the time. He just dishes out the shopping lists and then builds the doomsday devices once they're ready. "It is a pity we don't have the available forces to stage a distraction" Fulcrum replies via broadband radio, his deep voice crackling over the airwaves. "No doubt Briar or his underlings will be quick to the scene. On the other hand, the ceramic tiles should be reasonably resistant to damage taken while making our escape." Soundwave tilts his head. Wasn't Scrapper whining about not having enough energon, and now they're raiding for materials instead Bah, like he cares. The Decepticons can make plenty of energon on their own nowadays, although the occasional raid certainly helps. "Palmdale California is also close in proximity to Autobot City--obviously. Autobot retaliation will be swift, but with this task force we should be able to retrieve what we desire." Black and yellow cassette tape chimes in, "True, but then they have been somewhat lax on security recently, we should have a reasonable amount of time to procure what we require." B-1B Lancer adds, even as she begins to climb in altitude, "Most of the tiles should already be manufactured en masse, and in storage in crates. If those are destroyed, well... there's always the raw materials there in the same warehouse. Let us commence!" She bolts for the Pacific. A shuttle to fetch shuttle tiles might have made a bit more sense, alas... California Covering almost 158,700 square miles, the Golden State contains everything from redwood and sequoia forests in the north, to the fertile Central Valley, to the deserts of the south and east. A land of contrasts, the lush beauty of forested national parks such as Redwood and Yosemite are matched by the harsh beauty of the Death Valley and Joshua Tree national parks. The coast, too, varies from waves dashing themselves at the foot of the rocky cliffs in the north to gentle swells lapping the sandy beaches in Southern California. The state is not only one of the most beautiful, but is also the most populous in the United States, concentrated mostly in major cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco. MiG 29 follows after the bomber, privately not sure about the wisdom of raiding so close to the Autobot's HQ. But then again, he's done things roughly as stupid and walked away with only crippling injuries, so... Probably chattering Fulcrum's audial off the entire time, Fusillade is in reasonably good spirits as the Decepticons make use of the high-altitude corridor through Mexico. Their path allowed them to go unmolested, and soon, the Baja Peninsula is behind them, they've blasted past San Diego. Now, Los Angeles looms to their northwest as they track to Palmdale, California. The group have likely already triggered local defenses as the Rockwell International complex, now owned by the Boeing Company, comes into view. "The tile fabricator machine is in the west warehouse, and should be considered our primary objective. The materials are in the north warehouse, and should be considered our secondary objective. Time to open these tin cans and take home the prizes inside!" The bomber begins to dive. Payloader transforms back into his more comfortable robot mode as soon as he can. The purple flight wing vanishes back into subspace, waiting to be called in again the next time Scrapper needs to fly or Devastator needs a chest. Falling towards the ground, the Constructicon kicks in his anti-gravs at the last moment, coming in for a soft landing on the northern warehouse's lawn. Scrapper pulls out his laser pistol as the plant begins its standard evacuation. They have no reason to stick around - they have insurance for this kind of stuff. Payloader transforms into robot mode. Soundwave, lagging behind the others a tad, hovers far above the factory, considering options. Then, pressing the button on his shoulder and opening his tape slot, he declares, "Buzzsaw, eject. Operation: Reconnaissance. Intercept and harass Autobot response team." Then he plummets down towards the facility, his concussion rifle materializing in his hands. He idly wonders if Fusillade is just looking to "pimp" herself up with new parts? (That's the correct human word to use, right?) Air Defense Surveillence grids along the California/Mexico border register the passage of several Decepticons, a sizeable raiding force. Black and yellow cassette tape ejects dutifully transforming as Buzzsaw leaps away from Soundwave and heads out to do some perimeter sweeps. ooO(Oh sure it's Laserbeak kill this, Laserbeak kill that, all i ever get is reconnaissance work, that is when Laserbeak hasn't stolen the job already.)Ooo "As you wish Soundwave." Small black and yellow cassette tape leaps up, expanding and unfolding into Buzzsaw. MiG 29 responds to Fusillade's ceaseless chatter with monosyllabic affirmatives and the occasional grunt, half listening but more focused on the prospect of resistance. As the bomber dives, the MiG transforms cutting his engines at the same time to fall towards the complex, firing his foot-mounted afterburners at the last moment to land with a heavy booming sound on a now-scorched patch of earth, hammer already in hand as he stalks with heavy tread towards the target building, ignoring the fleeing humans and crushing any object unable to move out of his way. The MiG-29 twists around and folds in on itself with a grinding sound, transforming into the robotic form of Fulcrum. Cybertronian Off Road Jeep is speeding along the highway heading only Jazz knows where. He would prefer to have more information but, cons...shooty..that's really all he needs to know at this point. Roadbuster kicks up the speed, or at least tries, as he can't keep up very well to the faster autobots. Martini Porsche 953 turbo just rips along the roads, as his engine roars. Or it would be, if his radio wasn't so loud, that probably even his slower allies could hear it. "Ill teach them to mess with some of my favorite hangouts." He says to himself, and his shifter kicks it into the next gear. The racing car is sure making some incredible time, as he recieves the transmission. Bluestreak keeps up with Jazz, apparently staying silent--although he could be talking to himself, trying to keep himself calm, and nobody would know the difference. Not with Jazz's radio blaring the way it is, at least. He HATES fighting, always has and always will, but there are humans' lives at stake here. This time, he could make an exception. Doesn't make him any less nervous about the inevitable upcoming fight, though. Aerospace consultants, space technologists, and materials engineers scramble for the parking lots to the southeastern side of the buildings, quickly becoming a non-factor in the Decepticons' rampage. Transforming, Fusillade slams down on the reinforced girders that brace the hangar and warehouse walls between the Western and Northern buildings. The corrugated steel roofing squeals in protest, and buckles, causing her to tip-toe in tightrope formation on the beam. Flexing wingblades, she gives a wicked, greedy grin, and leans forward a bit to shear the roofing off, hmming as she look about for the right materials and crates. "Hmm... look for TPS, HRSI, and LRSI, guys. Grab as many as you can! There's a good reason for it." She seems very careful about keeping the terms vague. The hum of Autobot engines can't be quite made out over the sound of all the screeching metal and all the other engines of the fleeing workers' vehicles. The sleek bomber rears up, wings collapsing onto hips even as the rear fuselage splits to form arms. The horizontal stabilizer slides up, the forward fuselage folds up accordian style, and Fusillade hops up on thrustered feet. Fusillade adds, "OH! And RCC." Scrapper turns and glances at Fulcrum as the MiG lands. The Constructicon gestures with a lime green hand at Fulcrum and steps in line with him. "Ah yes, breaking into a warehouse and stealing everything of value. Just like the good ol' days." Scrapper waves his laser pistol around threateningly, just to make sure none of the fleshbags get any stupid ideas. They all seem fairly well trained in their evacuation, however, and so Scrapper probably won't have to step on any of them. "Sure thing!" he calls out without asking what that good thing is. The Constructicon reaches the exterior wall of the warehouse and takes a step back. "Care for the honours?" he asks Fulcrum, gesturing to that hammer of his. Soundwave slams into the ground in front of the west warehouse, and elects to go in through the sides rather than the ceilings--besides, it will amuse him if the humans panic even more at seeing giant metal death machines coming at them from every angle. He kicks at the metal walls until they split, then reaches into the gap with his hands to pull them apart even further. Shelving that had been sitting on that side of the wall collapses and scatters parts everywhere. Fulcrum nods at Scrapper and moves quickly to follow his order/suggestion. One swing from that dire hammer is all it takes to send a sizable section of wall tumbling inwards, Fulcrum tearing more sheets of metal from the edge to widen the hole. "After you" he intones, glancing towards where Fusillade is making her entrance, waiting for Scrapper to step inside before ducking in himself, head turning this way and that as he searches for the valuable heat sheilding plates. Human materials are always sub standard, but their rate of production is a lot higher, and Primus knows the Decepticons are damaged often enough. Buzzsaw circles almost lazily a good distance from the resource point, his keen optics picking up nearly all the localised movement. Then he notices the speeding vehicles throwing up a lot of dirt in their wake, he sends a quick report to Soundwave, "Three in the advance party probably more slower Autobots incoming, seems like they're a little upset at our shopping. I'll see just what i can do to slow them down." Buzzsaw already having altered his heading during his report dives towards the incoming speedsters, opening fire on the road hopefully slowing down the front runners a bit and maybe causing some damage. Buzzsaw strikes Martini Porsche 953 turbo with Twin Mortar Cannon. Martini Porsche 953 turbo is definately the leading car of the group, probably not good for the 'Bot as it seems he's been spotted. "Autobots, be careful we got 'Cons in the...AAhh!" He says, as his hood is smacked hard with the Decepti-tape's attack. Smoke rises off the front of the Porsche as he still charges towards the factory. Though Jazz won't take that from no little tape, as he transforms and begins running along the road. His arrival won't take too long, as he can already see the smoke rising from the damaged buildings. "Autobots lets crash this party!" Un-subspacing his solar rifle, he takes a hip-shot at Buzzsaw, but that's not his target and thusly continues to run past the aerial tape. With two metallic hands coming out from the front underside of the Porsche, the car flips backwards and reconfigures into Jazz. His feet landing on the ground with a loud 'thump'. Jazz strikes Buzzsaw with Laser. Cybertronian Off Road Jeep speeds along following Jazz. He transforms quickly after Jazz is hit. Skidding to a stop he rolls to the side avoiding the line of fire from the birdy. He scrambles to his feet and says, "Wreckers, wreck 'em!" He hefts his APMG rifle from his back and swings it towards Fulcrum who hasn't entered the building yet. He lifts the rifle slightly and fires off a stream of yellow tracer and AP rounds in a high arc towards Fulcrum. Roadbuster lifts up and shifts into his robot mode. Roadbuster strikes Fulcrum with AMPG . Bluestreak's headlights flash in surprise as Buzzsaw opens fire on them, but decides against wasting ammo on such a small target. There are more Decepticons ahead, if the smoke rising from the damaged buildings is of any indication. He jumps off of the road and transforms, sprinting after Jazz and catching up easily. "Ready!" He confirms with a slight grin as he fires on Scrapper, who seems to be about ready to enter the building. Nope, not gonna happen. Bluestreak fluidly transforms to his robotic mode. Bluestreak strikes Scrapper with electricity. "Aw, ya juzt gotta faceload fulla it, Jazz!" The Cybertron Drill Tank emits in remark as Jazz's fender takes a beating from Buzzsaw. "Ya gotta watchout fuddadem craftee kuhsettuhkons! Can't let 'um get all up in ya faceplate, all up in yo' biznizz, in yo' Autobase, eatin' yo' enuhjon chips, sleepin' in yo' enuhjuyzin' stayshun!" In the time it has taken your processors to comprehend this Jumpstarter's obtuse dialogue, he has already zipped into the fray. "Lookout! Dis iz da heeeeet! Tee-to-thuh-dubbayew-to-thuh-eye-to-thuh-en, Tee-dubbayew-eye-ess-tee!" He zooms up behind Roadbuster and then neatly cuts to the side, initiating jaw-droppingly simplistic transformation procedures! Twin Twist leaps forward, his sturdy arms reaching behind his chassis. A flash of purple reveals the handles of two oversized, overchromed rifle-cannons that he brings to the ready. With just a tilt, the brave Autobot presents his shoulder to a wall of the facility that the Decepticons have infiltrated and smashes through! "Ohyeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Twin Twist jumpstarts his day by flipping his legs off his chest to become a robot! Closing in behind the gaggle of Autobots is Bumblebee, ripping through the dust trails as fast as his pint-sized accelerator will allow. He made it to the rendezvous outside Autobot City just in time to watch the team take off, and has been struggling to catch up since. Now he's so close to joining the main group, the figurative ants in his figurative pants have got him as agitated as a kid who whips the Nintendo controller in a frantic attempt to make Mario just squeak by that pitfall of doom. The miniscule Autobot's mantra of "Come on...come on..." is drowned out beneath the sounds of an engine being taxed to its limits, interrupted only by a helpless "NO!" as he spies Jazz take a hit and the battle begins. "Hold on, guys...I'm comin'!" The self-directed, heroic statement, he realizes, sounds silly when his competition is sized up. Embarassed, Bumblebee just pushes his systems further, trying to get to the scene to prove to himself that he can do SOMETHING helpful for the team, even if it's just drawing some fire. Scrapper gives a mock bow to Fulcrum and says, "Why thank you, kind mech! You're too kind." The Constructicon steps inside to begin taking a look around. In the relative darkness of the warehouse compared with outside, Scrapper's crimson optical visor glows slightly. "Now then, you heard the list. TPS, HRSI, LRSI, and RCC." Luckily, both Scrapper and Fulcrum are techies so they know what to look for. Just imagine if it had been one of tbose dumb-as-bolts Cons! Distracted by the sounds of weapons fire and shouting outside (wreck what?), Scrapper peeks back out through the hole, "Ah yes, the Autobots are here already. I don't see any EDC Exos, though." He looks over his shoulder, "Hey maybe we sh- gah!" Scrapper is struck by the weapons fire from Bluestreak, and falls back through the hole of the warehouse out of site, landing on his back. Fusillade struts on the groaning I-beam like a bird on a wire, before she clatters down on the scrubbed concrete of the manufacturing floor. She pauses as she looks at the glowing orange interiors of the abandoned batch furnaces. "Yep, this is the place!" she chirps mostly to herself, before weaving her way carefully over several steel conduits and heat-venting ducts. Her shadow falls over several cooling vats, before she plants her hands on her hips at the myriad pallets of generously padded space tile array frames. "Hmm... TPS-HRSI" she reads the stencils on the wood framework aloud, before cracking open the top to dig around in the packing materials. With a triumphant 'Ah-HA!' she holds up the armor-scale patterned set of 24 tiles to the sunlight streaming in through the wrecked roof. The stacatto rattle of weapons fire snaps her to attention, and she quickly begins stuffing the boxes into her spare arm and leg compartments, glancing up from time to time. "Smelt. Scrapper, I need you to help me load, stop gettin' shot up. Is Soundwave here? Soundwave!" She tightbeam radios the DCI operative her ideas. Soundwave says, "Well done, Buzzsaw. Now pick off their weaker members. It will destroy their morale." Fulcrum is JUST about to step inside when a fusillade (no relation) of armour-penetrating rounds impact on his shoulder, large holes appearing in his green armor with a series of popping impacts. Snarling, he wrenches a piece of metal from the wall and hiffs it towards his attacker, before stepping inside (and over Scrapper), moving deeper into the building to search for the materials they require. "We have company" he intones over his shoulder, a cursory glance indicating the Constructicon is not severely damaged. Fulcrum strikes Roadbuster with Thrown Sheet Metal!. Fusillade says, "Fulcrum, Buzzsaw, Soundwave, engage the Autobots.� Ah, you have that well in hand.� Scrapper and I are best at loading and carrying." Fulcrum says, "Hn. Very well." Buzzsaw gives a smile as he blasts the lead Autobot with his weaponry as he starts to bank for a second run Jazz returns fire blasting him dead center causing some serious damage and almost flipping him in the air. Buzzsaw drops his altitude considerably as the Autobots race by, he then heads towards one of the other slower moving Autobots and low and behold the little yellow cheerleader drives into view, speed up to maximum Buzzsaw moves in attemptimg to split the banana. Buzzsaw strikes Volkswagen Bug with Micro-serrated Severance Package. Soundwave tears open the wall, stomping in and kicking aside some of the equipment he had knocked over, as well as the dead bodies of the humans crushed by said equipment. His heavy feet thunder across the warehouse as he reviews the various crates contained within, inspecting them like recruits lined up for inspection. Hm, nope, not that one... no, that's no good either... lessee, is that an RCC he spies there? He leans forward for a closer look... and all of a sudden... CRASH! All of a sudden Twin Twist smashes into the facility, headed right for the crate. Thinking fast, he boots the crate from himself, causing it to slide across the ground on his palette. "Idiot Autobot," Soundwave booms. "Get out of our way." He then tries to grab Twin Twist's face in a powerful, crushing grip. Meanwhile, he replies to Fusillade. "I am present, Fusillade. What do you require?" Soundwave strikes Twin Twist with Crush FACE!!!. You transmit a message to Soundwave: Looks like you've already got it under control. Scrapper and I will do the bulk of the loading, you should consider defending against the Autobots your new primary objective, with tile acquisition your secondary. Roadbuster beats the metal away with a swinging forearm but it gives a nice gash in the process. He looks at the wound, gives it no other thought, and strides forward. With Scrapper still visible but down, besides Buzzsaw, he swings his targeting system around to point at the birdy. His shrapnel missile launcher comes on line and sweeps around picking out the flying target, then fires the warhead. The missile screams though the air before exploding in a huge cloud of shotgun like shrapnel. "OooRah." he says, satisfied if it hits or not. Jazz runs through the Autobot created entrace, following up behind Twin Twist. His optic visor shines, as he looks at what is exactly going on. Though, an immeadiate threat is found, in the form of Soundwave. Though it doesn't take long for him to get the Comm officer off Twin. The sides of Jazz's hips open up, revealing a pair of twin speakers with light emitters attached to the top. "Im sorry Soundwave, but I can't let your little solo hurt my troops." With that, A lightshow and music begin to play. If it hits, Soundwave might be listening to Earth, Wind and Fire's 'Dancing in September'. Jazz strikes Soundwave with his Special attack. Soundwave says, "Report your status, Buzz--ARRRGH!!!" "Who yew callin' idiot!?" Twin Twist is quick to snap back at Soundwave. "Yer a borin' induhviduhal and ah would much pruhfur battlin' wits wit' thuh likes of Shokwave than yew! At leest, Shokwave's bantuh sounds nysuh than yer kako-phownik talky-makin'! Yew stink! Yo' tapes stink! Yer coloration stinks! And mo' impohtuntlee, ah don't think yer a very nice purhson!" The rant is delirious as it is vicious, guaranteed to make even the Great and Terrible Unicron scratch his be-horned noggin in sheer confusion. In fact, the great Autobot hero takes this moment to pump his left rifle-wielding fist in the air in frustration at his yellow-colored compatriot... "Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Ah shake mah fist at yew!!!" Twin Twist howls in frustration and thus, distracted when Soundwave reaches out for his head. "'ey!!" The Decepticon's blue fingers grasp around the Jumpstarter's bucket-helmet, the pressure exerted on it eliciting several depressions and a creak of metal. "'ey! Get offa head, ya chump-o! Ah must prohtest! And ah buhleeve actions speak loudah than words! Taste mah fury, Duhceptikon!!" Hooking his arm around, Twin Twist places the barrel of his cannon against Soundwave's glassy chest. His finger tugs on the trigger, discharging firepower! *KRAKOW! KRAKOW!* The enormously, ridiculously, tremendously oversized weapon kicks back in Twin Twist's strong hand as it unloads two rounds. Geo says, "Soundwave, are you alright?" Twin Twist strikes Soundwave with Don't Slip Up or Get Caught (Why not Man?) I'm comin' for they number one spot!. Bluestreak grins as his shot connects with Scrapper, downing him, and he follows Twin Twist and Jazz inside the complex. He realizes that he can't fire his shoulder-mounted rockets in here, so he's restricted to just using his rifle and normal melee attacks. Well, so be it. He aims and fires his rifle at Fulcrum, trying to keep him from assisting the other 'Cons. Bluestreak strikes Fulcrum with electricity. Volkswagen Bug watches Buzzsaw grow nearer and nearer, pushing himself to the limit to try and get the drop on the Decepticon. Wait a sec, it kind of looks like the bird ain't going back for another pass on the big fellas. In fact, it looks like he's...heading right for Bumblebee. He tries to swerve out of the way, but Buzzsaw is moving too quickly. "...and Buzzsaw's about to get a beakfull of -- ACK!" The radio conversation is cut short as the sharper qualities of Buzzsaw have their way with Bumblebee, starting by gashing his front right tire and ripping his right door asunder. The impact combined with Bumblebee's speed send him spinning, crashing against the ground several times before he gains enough sense to transform and put a stop to the rollover. "So much for getting the drop on 'em..." Landing flat on his stomach, Bumblebee grunts and raises his little pistol into the sky, trying to draw a bead on Buzzsaw. "You aren't making my day any brighter, you dirty, little stool-pigeon!" Bumblebee transforms into robot mode. Bumblebee strikes Buzzsaw with Laser Pistol, HOOOOOOO!. The Decepticons are raiding the Boeing Company's, formerly Rockwell International's, reentry tile manufacturing plant and warehouse. Currently, most of the action is happening in the western building -- or what's left of its shredded ceiling and walls. Fulcrum, Soundwave, and Buzzsaw are actively engaging the Autobots, while Fusillade and Scrapper are doing their best to load up. Fusillade wrinkles her nose at the amount of packing material around the stacks of tiles and their arrays, and then begins stripping them off to maximize the number of pieces she can cram into her container spaces. However, that very quickly disappears, and with a whimper, she admits, "Time to get some more space." With the ferocity of the fighting going on around her, and the relative success so far with her own work, Fusillade looks left, right, shiftily, before popping the midline of her torso open, and reaching in to manually pull out an entire rotary carriage loaded with a rack of eight JDAMs. "Wish I had brought more missiles," she grumps, before setting the bone down, and cramming in more of the HRSI, before brightening visibly as spying a set of RCC crates. At the sonic duel going on between Jazz and Soundwave, she winces a bit as some of the tiles begin to rattle in her hands. Fulcrum stops, muttering something over the Decepticon frequencies before spinning on one heavy heel. Hrm. If he is not needed for materials aquisition, then... He runs his fingers over the bullet holes in his armour. Time for some payback. Now, one would expect Fucrum to emerge from the large hole he's torn in the side of the building. But one would be wrong. With a gigantic crash, Fulcrum bursts through a previously unscathed side of the building, wincing as a bolt from inside the complex strikes his back. But it's too late to turn to face the new threat now, as his boot-jets burn white hot, rubble tumbling from his frame as he corrects his course, heading straight for Roadbuster, holding his hammer out for some aerial plastic surgery. On the Autobot's face. Fulcrum strikes Roadbuster with Fly-by Pummelling. Scrapper says, "Does anyone need help or should I concentrate on the shopping?" Soundwave abruptly shudders as Jazz's horrible, horrible taste in music flows over him. Ah, yes, Jazz. If there is one Autobot Soundwave hates ALMOST as much as Blaster, it would be Jazz, since he is particularly vulnerable to his light and audio "shows," due to his sensitive sensory equipment. And so, Soundwave releases Twin Twist, and immediately clutches at his own head, reeling in pain. "ARRRRGH!" he booms. And Twin Twist's ranting goes completely unnoticed by him, which might be a good thing, except that Soundwave might've dodged Twin Twist's cannons if he had been able to concentrate properly. Instead, however, the shells slam into his chest with great force and send him flying across the warehouse against a robotic manufacturing assembly. Mechanical limbs and parts from nearby shelves fall over onto him, creating a collossal mess. Soundwave twitches underneath the pile. Buzzsaw's beak bites into the yellow beetle carving a nice swathe of damage. So busy admiring his handiwork he fails to notice that one of the bots that had passed him by hadn't forgotten about him, that is until he is engulfed by a cloud of shrapnel, holes are torn through his wings and his body has more than a few exposed areas some dripping lubricant and other internal fluids. Still reeling from the considerable damage he is unable to avoid the laser fire from the little yellow Autobot, his body starts to emit plumes of smoke as vital systems start to shut down. Sending one last weak message "Damage critical *static* i can*static* continue." Not knowing if his systems were strong enough to reach the other Decepticons he shakily heads for safety. Buzzsaw begins retreating, leaving itself vulnerable to parting shots from Sweepcraft , Autobot Hovercraft . Soundwave says, "I... hate... Disco." Scrapper says, "Who?" Scrapper slowly picks himself up off the floor of the northern Boeing warehouse. The Constructicon expected to see Bluestreak charging in with all guns firing, but as luck would have it, the Decepticon blacksmith has now sought a second Autobot to tank, and so Bluestreak seems otherwise occupied. As the Decepticons seem to have things well in hand for the moment, Scrapper instead stays in the warehouse and begins gathering up the required supplies. A lone Sweepcraft descends from above, approaching the warehouse where other Decepticons have decided to take a shopping trip, as it were. Unfortunately, several of his compatriots are quickly exiting, so it is clear that they need some backup. He notices Roadbuster and lines the Autobot up for a strafing run. Sunder strikes Roadbuster with ballistic. Roadbuster takes the hit but moves his head so it crunches against his shoulder plating. He shifts his weight downward slightly, but won't give Fulcrum the pleasure of falling just yet. Roadbuster grunts looking at Fulcrum and says, "Bad..." he reaches out to try grabbing at Fulcrum's throat before moving him into a body slam, "....MOVE!" Ballistic rounds rip into his back impacting and exploding on the armor frying his com equipment but if he felt it, he's not showing it. He rips off the com backpack with a snapping of wires and holds it in his hand for now, probably being used as a weapon next turn. Roadbuster strikes Fulcrum with Roadhouse Buster Slam. Jazz runs after the reeling Soundwave, trying to keep up with him. "This one's mind, Autos. Just make sure to keep them from stealing the equipment." Jazz clomps along the factory's floor, as all the boxes and such are scattered about. "Hey Soundwave, let me show you the next big -hit-!" Jumping into the air, and swinging his arms back. Jazz looks epic at the moment, no one could possibly the scene playing out before the others. If they were watching anyways, because the Autobot lives and thrives on all the is considered cool and stylish. Though, Jazz has the uncanny ability to make it work in such a way. Regardless, this is when the Specialops officer attempts to bring his balled fists down on Soundwave. Jazz strikes Soundwave with punch. Fulcrum is tougher than this. He really is. But there's some mystical, otherworldly force that's controlling his actions from afar, and that mystical otherworldly force needs some rest. So Roadbuster's crazy body slam maneuver is surprsingly effective, so effective that it puts Fulcrum down for the count. Hm. Or maybe he just runs away when no-one is looking. The shells settle on the factory floor with a plinky-clink-clink. Twin Twist is left batting his optical lighting on what has just occured: Soundwave was sent packing. "Huh.." He murmurs to himself, slightly in disbelief. Surely, the Decepticon Talk-Man is made of sterner steel, isn't he? The Autobot shrugs his treaded shoulders, comfortable in a victory being a victory. He hoists up his right rifle, letting the wisps of smoke dance along the rim of the chromed barrel, striking a juicy pose for justice. "Ho ho ho! Dis iz why ah urned an Ay-plus in heroiks!" Suddenly, Mad-man Jazz goes barreling off for Soundwave's remains, his hands bundled up and looking plenty angry. "'ey!" Twin Twist shouts at Jazz, "Whatchu doin', goin' aftuh a disabled enemy!? Don't be a bum, Jazz! Whut would Optim..." "Oh ho!" Twin Twist remarks jubiliantly as he catches something sharp and shapely out the corner of his optical sensor. With a slight twist of his head and a squint of his optical ridge, he focuses in on the earthy-hued Decepticon further away, unmolestedly furthering the purpose of her malevolent team. Or, to put it in plain Transformerish, Twin Twist spent a few minutes looking at her rear. "..'ey, 'ey.." He murmurs to himself, "Ah must introduce myself!" Lunging forward, the Autobot snaps into his vehicular mode and makes a bee-line for Fusillade. Upon her, he leaps up into robot mode and assails her with a boisterous fist to the back! "'ey-yo, Miss! Ah introduce myself inna violent fashion! Ah'ma ruff, ruff lovahhhhhhhh!" You evade Twin Twist's I FOUND you, MISS NEW BOOTY! Get it together and bring it back to me! attack. "Alright!" Bumblebee cheers as Buzzsaw flies off. "Scratch one 'Con!" He manages to stifle total celebration for the time being in order to keep his eye on the prize, namely, helping the other Autobots. As he darts for the base, he sees the Sweep descending from the skies and opens his mouth to warn Roadbuster, but his voice is muted by the ballistic attack. Instead, he just beats feet to the scene, pulling out a small metallic capsule and hurling it up into the sky towards the Sweep. "I think we're a little outgunned here, Roadbuster!" Watching the wrecker unleash on Fulcrum puts second thoughts into the Autobot's head, "Or...at least, I am!" he laughs nervously. Bumblebee strikes Sweepcraft with Electro Mini-Bomb. Bluestreak nods once. "Got it, Jazz," he acknowledges as he looks at the spot where Scrapper had fallen--only to realize that he isn't there anymore. However, with Twin Twist going after Fusillade, that means that somebody has to go back outside and help Roadbuster. He stands at the Autobot-made hole in the wall and fires one of his shoulder-mounted rockets at the distinct form of a Sweepcraft flying overhead. Bluestreak strikes Sweepcraft with rocket. Soundwave emits a monosyllabic grunt as the fists slam home onto his chest, leaving a respectable dent, but hardly taking him out of that fight (as seen with that sissy boy, Fulcrum). Soundwave glowers up at Jazz after the attack connects. "Jazz. That was an interesting melody. Of course, I prefer a different kind of 'music.' Allow me to share it with you." His chest vibrates, and soon a thundering noise erupts from it, blasting off all the debris that had been piled up on him. But the demented thing about the noise is that it is actually a very highly amplified recording of the last thing Ironhide ever said: "NOOO!" Cries and screams. Cries and screams... Soundwave misses Jazz with his sonics attack. Sweepcraft howls as two blasts hit him. One barely hurts, but the other hurts A LOT. Figures--the culprits had just come out of the warehouse and taken him by surprise. But in his rage, he ignores the two attackers and instead focus on the one that had been attacking Fulcrum. Sunder strikes Roadbuster with Plasma. "Reinforced Carbon-Carbon," Fusillade enunciates as she reads the more detailed lettering on the package. "Isn't that... kinda redundant?" she wonders aloud, puckering slightly as she shakes the box, letting it rattle around before peeling out the highest heat-resistant material produced in the facility, and cramming it into the missile dispensers along her torso. She looks a little uncomfortable with the entering mass, and so, Twin Twist gets pretty doggone close. However, he opens his mouth. Saffron optics widening visibly, whipping around deflect the punch. She raises the bristling, sharpened aileron mounted on her forearm to slash upward along Twin Twist's collarbone and face. "Be ready to take what you dish out, then!" she spits. "Scrapper, keep on loading!" You strike Twin Twist with Tailslab Slash. Scrapper is out of sight and so can't thumbs up back to Fusillade concerning her orders. "Sure thing!" he shouts, even though he's probably just drawing more attention to himself. The Constructicon continues loading and going through the warehouse to find what he needs. "These humans are so efficient and well organized. It's truly a pleasure to shop here," he chuckles to himself. Jazz doesn't stand infront of the Decepticon Comm officer, he lunges to the side and slides out of the path of sound? Regardless, he still got to hear what Soundwave was trying to hit him with. "Not cool, Soundbyte..." He says, and raises his rifle up. "No one spits on my friend's memories like that. How about I give the eulogy for your own little scrap, Ill make sure to have your -favorite- music for the occassion." You can hear the rifle whine as it charges to full power. Though, Jazz spoke too much, and fires a quick burst of plasma at the Comm Officer. Jazz remains cool and confident in his choice to take the 'Con on. He does turn his head to see how the others are doing at the moment. Jazz strikes Soundwave with Plasma. Roadbuster shouts at Bumblebee, "Then get where you're needed lad! I can handle that flying soap dish. Tell the others to focus on the mission and stop those cons already in the building, my radio is fragged." He dives to avoid the blast from Sunder, but the plasma washes over Roadbuster all the same. Armor sizzles and fries against the plasma causing more than a few of his systems to fry and go off line. From his hip a compartment splits and slides out showing his double barreled carbine. He pulls out the weapon and points it one handed at Sunder for a second before fires out a double shot of energy. Roadbuster strikes Sweepcraft with Side Carbine Pistol . Twin Twist's fist sails past Fusillade. For a moment, he looks at it before looking back to Fusillade. He offers his fist a grimace, a sort of 'Boy, I did not expect that to happen' look of disapproval. As his optics slide back to Fusillade, his lips beginning to set into a smug look, she swings her forearm blade at him. Skkrrrrrreeech! Metal wails in protest as a long, thin line is cut across Twin Twist's lips to his boxy chest. Fusillade is rewarded with a light splash of bright energon fluid. "Yaaggh!" The Autobot yelps as he is forced a step back in pain. "Yew tricky woman!" He grumbles, curling his fingers into a fist to shake at Fusillade. "Ah'll givvya sum cahbon cahbon!" With his free hand, Twin Twist pulls out one of those ludicrously blinged-out rifle-cannons and holds it loftily at Fusillade. With a narrow of his optic, he depresses the trigger. The enormous weapon bucks back wildly as it unloads on the razor-edged femme fatale! *choomchoomchoom!* You evade Twin Twist's Remember to let her under your skin, then you'll begin to make it... better, better, better, better, better, better, better (waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!) attack. Bluestreak waves to Bumblebee as he hears Roadbuster's 'order' to the smaller 'Bot. "Come on, Bee, get in here!" He shouts as he turns on his heel and disappears back inside. He makes his way towards where he hears Twin Twist, seeing him fighting Fusillade. He surveys the scene, optics narrowing, and thinks he sees a splash of green--yep, it's Scrapper alright. "'Cons don't know when to just stay down," he mutters angrily as he aims and fires his second shoulder-mounted rocket at the Constructicon. His doorwings stand on-end as Soundwave releases that sound in retaliation against Jazz, but he seems to not really notice it. Bluestreak strikes Scrapper with rocket. "Okay," Bumblebee answers shakily, shielding his optics from the plasma burst. He decides to trust that Roadbuster knows what he's doing and darts inside the facility. He pauses as he approaches Soundwave and Jazz, but decides to stay out of it. He sidles around the dueling duo and continues into the building, eventually nearing a familiar face. He spies Twin Twist duking it out with Fusillade, and decides now would be a good time to try a little stealth action. Sticking to the wall, he tries to find a back door into that room...maybe he can trip that Decepticon chick or something...and Twin Twist lets loose with a fearsome barrage, several stray shots coming towards him, others hitting equipment and sending it flying towards the little Autobot. So much for stealth. Bumblebee hops, streaks and books it out of the hot zone and turns a corner and WHAM -- runs right into something painted lime green. Falling backwards with an oof, he pauses and looks at that wall he ran into and realizes..."Uh oh..." Luckily, it's Bluestreak to the rescue! Bumblebee shoots Bluestreak a grin and a thumbs up. "Fancy meeting you here, Bluestreak..." Scrapper is greatly enjoying the chance to gather up the materials without getting shot at. The Cons outside are doing a good job keeping the Bots distracted. Or at least, they were up until Bluestreak makes it through into the warehouse and launches a rocket at him. The projectile scores a direct hit on his shoulder, exploding and sending the Constructicon reeling backwards. It's lucky for him that he manages to keep his grip on the pistol. "Managed to get through the others, eh Bluestreak?" The Constructicon mutters. Slung over his back is an armoured metal container for the supplies he's already swiped. Scrapper is about to charge the Autobot when suddenly he feels something hit him in the back. Scrapper whirls around, gasping in shock and horror at the Autobot minibot. "Oh no..." he groans. "Not you! Anybody but you!" Acting on pure desperation, Scrapper snatches Bumblebee up and throws him at Blueshift! Scrapper misses Bluestreak with his When Bumblebees Attack attack. Fusillade says, "I'm engaged! Any available units, cover Scrapper. We will be withdrawing shortly." Soundwave stumbles back as the plasma beam sears across his chest, melting away at the transparisteel plating on his chest. But Soundwave's cruelty is utterly undamaged by the attack, and he continues to torment Jazz. "I am sorry, I had thought that you would want to hear his last utterance in this existance. I was clearly mistaken. However, you should know that Ironhide died a useless death on that shuttle, failing to critically injure even one of my cassetticons. It was quite pathetic, like your entire cause." Scooping up a long, mechanical limb from the floor, Soundwave charges at Jazz, and once in range, whips it out his improvised weapon across at Jazz's face, adding insult to injury (unless he misses horribly again!). Soundwave misses Jazz with his Improvised Whip attack. Sixshot says, "What's the SitRep?" Fusillade says, "A bit, -busy- right now..." Sixshot is agitated.. Which isn't difficult to do, mind you. "Do you need me there or not?" The menace presented by Twin Twist demands Fusillade's attention. Even as she kicks back against the battle-scarred floor to regain distance, she sneers at the loud, raucous banter from Twin Twist. However, her features melt into a mixture of wonder and delight at the multitude of barrels and clips brought to bear by Twin Twist. "Whoa, that's a really awesome desi -- YACK!" She performs a half-split as she rears backward to avoid the slug launched at her cranium. The commotion around Scrapper barely registers, but she manages to beck and call to the other Decepticons present. One hand slips down to the grey armor along her upper leg that typically houses the landing gear of her altmode, and wtih a clack, dispenses her pistol. The interior is standard issue, but the chromed exterior is customized to vaguely resemble a Desert Eagle, and without further preamble, squeezes the trigger. Twin Twist evades your Standard Issue Argon Disruptor attack. Fusillade says, "We are withdrawing, Sixshot." Rumble lands with a thunk, turning his arms into piledrivers upon sighting the Autobots. "Oh yeah, this'll be fun!" he says, a grin upon his face Fusillade says, "Decepticons, secure any tiles you can, and withdraw to New Crystal City." Fusillade says, "Those of you still combat capable, cover Scrapper and me while we get out of here." Rumble says, "Wait... Withdrawing? I just got here!" Scrapper says, "Somebody kill Bluestreak!" Soundwave says, "Destroy the complex, Rumble. We require nothing else, here." Scrapper says, "Wait for me to get out, though." Rumble says, "Better hurry, cause I wanna burry those Autobots along with this joint!" Buzzsaw speaks weakly, "Get them Rumble." Scrapper says, "I'm going as fast as I can!" Fusillade says, "I think I saw a glacier go zooming by!" Fusillade has called a retreat. Sunder is under no obligation to heed the retreat. He decides for now to at least get one of the Autobots back that fired on him earlier. He heads for where Bluestreak is--back inside the warehouse--transforms, and pulls out his rocket launcher. After all, turnabout is fair play. Sunder shifts into his fearsome-looking robot mode. Sunder misses Bluestreak with his rocket attack. Jazz continues to try and keep cool infront of the enemy, but bringing up his dead friends and making a mockery is starting to wear on his usually cool manner. Though, he easily sidesteps the make-shift whip of Soundwave's. Pulling his right arm back, he lowers his head to give him a somewhat dark look. "I think you might wanna take up a different type of show Soundwave, because you are out of the act!" With that, Jazz tries to slam his fist into the Tape-deck cover on the Decepticon's chest. Regardless or not if he hits, Jazz looks up at the emotionless faceplate of Soundwave. "Looks like your time is up, lets close the curtains on your show." Jazz strikes Soundwave with� Cover goes smashy!. "... 'ey!" Twin Twist yelps as Fusillade pulls out a cannon of her own. He jerks his head down, momentarily under her line of fire. As gunshots ring out, this Autobot is quick to flip his legs onto his chest and hit the ground in vehicle mode. A peal of the squeal of tires against the factory floor is heard as Twin Twist surges forward and sharply turns, zooming toward the lime-green Decepticon hoisting a yellow man into the air. "'ey! Pahdon me, Chump-o! Yew got mah friend dere!" Springing forward to hurtle himself into the air, Twin Twist leaps over Scrapper's head and grasps Bumblebee in his meaty metal paws. "'ey, Bee! Good ta see ya!" Skating forward, Twin Twist motions to Bluestreak with a nod of his head and declares, "'ey, Streak! Waste dis Construktikon chump-o while Ah introhdoose Bee ta dis gurl ah just met! 'ey Bee, ya wanna meet a gurl!?" Giving Bumblebee a light toss into the air, Twin Twist catches his smaller Autobuddy by his Volkswagen ankles and starts spinning around. "My uhpol-lo-gees fo' thuh sloppee sekonds, Bee! But 'ey, nevah say Ah nevah did anythin' for ya!!" Spinning the Mighty Minibot around several times and setting his gyro-motors on turbo, Twin Twist attempts to aim as he lets go of Bumblebee -- right at Fusillade! Twin Twist strikes you with You know you're a... cute lil'... heartbreaker. Huh! (Foxy!) And you know you're a ... sweet lil'.. lovemaker! (Foxy!) I wanna bring ya home... won't do ya.. no harm! for 11 points of damage. Bluestreak sprints to the side, circling around Scrapper, as Twin Twist catches Bumblebee. Bluestreak suddenly skids to a stop as he drops to one knee, Sunder's rocket soaring above and to the right of his helm--completely missing him and hitting a wall instead. He lines up his rifle's sights on Scrapper and fires another bolt of blue lighting at the Constructicon. Bluestreak strikes Scrapper with electricity. Bumblebee's jovial greeting to Bluestreak is interrupted by hands wrapping themselves around his frame. Struggling to no avail, Bumblebee is hoisted up into the air and launched at his fellow Autobot. "Bluestreak, uh...whoa! WATCH OUT!" he cries as he sails face first through the air, flapping and swinging his arms in a futile attempt to change his course or slow his momentum. Lucky for our hero-in-minature, Twin Twist scoops Bumblebee out of the air. "It's even better to see you, Twin Twist!" Bumblebee gushes before his grin is erased by confusion. "Huh? Meet a what? URF!" he grunts as he's tossed and grabbed by the ankles. "Hey! Twin Twist...I..." finally, he gives in and just lets Twin Twist have a dose of spinning sarcasm before he's finally launched free. "GEE! MY HERO!" As he soars through the air, he sees the Decepticon Twin Twist was battling earlier and justs his fists out in front of him in anticipation of impact. "Hey there, lady! Somebody wanted me to meet you! OOF!" COLLISION. "What th-!" Scrapper exclaims as Twin Twist leaps out and grabs Bumblebee, saving him from being smashed against Bluestreak. "Argh, curse you!" he shouts angrily. The Constructicon shakes his fist at the Jumpstarter even as he throws everyone's favorite minibot at Fusillade. That was his idea! The Construticon starts forward, preparing to blast Twin Twist for his arrogance. Alas, he ends up getting blasted himself by Bluestreak's rifle smashed back down on the ground. "Why oh why couldn't you have been on shuttle duty also?" he snarls at the circling Bluestreak. Realizing which way the wind is blowing today. Looks like he'll have to stop the looting just as the looting was getting good. The Constructicon shifts into payloader mode. His powerful wheels can crush anything that might get in his way as he blasts for the hole Fulcrum made earlier. His power shovel quickly expands the hole to accomodate his larger size by ramming into it. The moment he's out and clear, his purple flight wing attaches itself from subspace and he takes off! Scrapper transforms into payloader mode. Scrapper begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from Sunder, Fusillade, Autobot Hovercraft . Sunder groans as Bluestreak luckily dodges the rocket. Ah well, he prefers to shred his victims anyway. He rushes at the Autobot gunner and pounces, preparing to slice-and-dice the armor instead. Boy, was he going to enjoy this... Sunder strikes Bluestreak with slash. Soundwave barely even budges as Jazz's punch strikes home. "You are trying my patience, Jazz. The act, as you put it, is finished only because we have what we came for. Now kindly step aside while we successfully complete another mission." With a speed that belies his bulky frame, Soundwave snaps out a powerful high-kick at Jazz's head, then another kick to propel the noisy Autobot away from him. Dusting himself off, Soundwave then walks almost casually towards the exit he had made in the side of the warehouse. Soundwave misses Jazz with his Double Kick attack. Fusillade growls under her intake as Twin Twist joins the dogpile on Scrapper. "At least they're using tactics and not being complete idi... what the SMELT?" She takes a bracing half-step backward as the mini-bot is sent barreling her way. There's a *KLONG* as those paired fists land squarely in the junction of her left shoulder and cockpit, tumbling end over end twice before shaking a structural beam with the force of their collective impact. Her expression falls slightly as the tinkle of multiple tiles within either chip or crack. "GAH! Get OFF of me! This is the SECOND half-sized FREAK that's glued himself to my torso this week!" The shrieking is accompanied by flailing, clawed hands and kicking afterburner feet as she wrests herself free, and bolts skyward to get some distance before transforming and joining Scrapper's withdrawal. Fusillade leans forward, wingblades whipping out to their full span, even as her arms lock backward in place as the rear fuselage. Her torso folds out to the become the cockpit of a Terran B-1B Lancer, ready for flight! Fusillade begins retreating, leaving herself vulnerable to parting shots from Sunder, Payloader , Autobot Hovercraft . Rumble leaps off the ground and flies at the somewhat larger Jazz. "No one attacks Soundwave while I'm here!" he shouts, attempting to punch Jazz, while in flight, squarily in the chest with one of his piledrivers Rumble strikes Jazz with Punch. Soundwave says, "Alert, Twin Twist may be attempting an area-effect attack!" Bluestreak would've fired on Scrapper again, just for that last snarled remark, but Sunder suddenly charges in and leaves deep slashes across his back and both of his flared door-wings with those claws. He yelps in surprised pain, then he spins around as he tries to nail the Sweep with backhanded punch. If he fails in actually hitting Sunder, he hopes it will at least force the Sweep to back off as he tries to move away. Bluestreak strikes Sunder with punch. Jazz dances about the two kicks, avoiding each on as they fly at him. "Is that all you can do, Soundwave. Well your name is right, all you can hit is the air..." Jumping back, Jazz aims his solar rifle at the departing Comm officer. "Maybe some laser therapy, will remind you not to turn your back on this cool cat..." Though, Jazz looks down as Rumble basically just plinks off his chest. Leaving nothing but a scratch on his paint. "Oh man, now I look horrible for the club later tonight." Hearing the transmission from Twin Twist, Jazz fires a quick shot at Rumble and ducks for cover. Jazz strikes Rumble with laser. With Roadbuster suddenly missing in action, the so-called 'Wreckers' team is without its field leadership. Thankfully (or perhaps regretably), Twin Twist has seen enough action and made enough calls to step up in a pinch. No-one ever said he was a good leader or even an adequate one -- just one who can make judgment calls. In a pinch. And by judgment call, we mean violence. "...EVRUHONE GET DOWN!" Twin Twist shouts over his communication link. His arms cross over his chest, metal-jacketed fingers reaching for chromed grips that appear on either side of his hips. With a tremendous groan, he pulls both oversized rifle-cannons from a subspace pocket and brings them out. Thumbs graze over the safety-pins, discharging the security locks on either weapon. Glancing to the left and glancing to the right, there are only a few Decepticons left to carry on the fight. With a narrow of his optical ridge, the boisterous Autobot cracks just a brief grin before opening his mouth. "AH COME FROM CYBATRON...!" "..ON THUH EAST SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDE! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" With great macho relish, Twin Twist roars as he pulls the triggers on both weapons. Simultaneously, they go off in his hot lil' hands, bucking wildly as they discharge round after round of explosive ammunition. *CHOOMCHOOMCHOOMCHOOM* *CHOOMCHOOMCHOOMCHOOM* Twin Twist unleashes his Hydraulics All Around, So We Shake the Ride! We go Front, Back, and Side-to-Side! attack on Soundwave, Rumble and Sunder, striking Soundwave and Rumble. Bumblebee just sits and watch a buttload of the Decepticons retreat with a sense of satisfaction. He's had enough excitement for today. He then hits the ground as Twin Twist shouts a warning and lets the chaos unfurl. Sunder doesn't have time to dodge the fist, so he decides to use it to his advantage instead. As he's struck, he quickly snaps his jaws, hoping to catch Bluestreak's hand or wrist--perhaps even bite it off. He had quite a collection of Autobot hands now, and it wouldn't hurt to add to it... Sunder misses Bluestreak with his bite attack. Payloader is home free at this point! The canister he had slung over his back is now resting comfortably in his power-shovel while he awkwardly makes the flight back towards New Crystal City. Soundwave cackles as he strides out, Rumble providing sufficient distraction to keep Jazz busy. Unfortunately, his amusement is short-lived as yet another series of explosive rounds tears into him, exploding against his back and knocking him out of the warehouse and onto to the floor. Pushing himself back up, he booms, "RUMBLE. DESTROY THE WAREHOUSE. Bury the Autobots within it." And soon, he's leaping up into the air, headed for the safety of their diabolical fortress. Soundwave begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from Green Cyber-Copter, Sunder, Bluestreak, Twin Twist, Jazz, Payloader , B-1B Lancer, Autobot Hovercraft . Rumble is not only hit by the laser, but is also sent flying due to Twin Twist's totally-not-overkill attack. Pulling himself off the ground and jumping towards the exit, he yells "Alright, Soundwave! Lets see how these bots like a little...". With that, Rumble begins reciprocating his piledrivers, in an attempt to not only injure the Autobots, but to take the whole building down on top of them! Rumble unleashes its Earthquake attack on Bumblebee, Jazz, Twin Twist, Bluestreak and Sunder, striking Bluestreak. Jazz turns to see exactly what Rumble and Soundwave have plans, only to be confirmed with that shout from the Comm officer. "Everyone, out of the warehouse!" He yells, and begins charging for the exit. Lights and industrial fans fall to the sides of Jazz, but he's able to jump, and get out of the structure. Quickly turning his head, he watches as the entire structure shakes from the stress of being shot at, and having it shaken to pieces. "Hurry up, and get out of that scene!" He yells back. "Great googly.." Twin Twist remarks as he surveys the spent shell-casings surrounding him. He nudges away the mound with his foot so as to step out of them. "Wit' witty one-line-uhs like dat.. ah could become a bankuhbul ackshun stah!" He hoists both rifles up, both barrels so hot that they sizzle and smoke profusely. "Thuh buildin's still standin'.. but other'n dat.. not too sha-- whoah!" The flooring beneath him begins to buckle and shake violently. "..'ey! dis buildin's comin' down! Let's vamoose, Bee Buddy!" The Jumpstarter launches forward on one giant foot, batting aside falling debris to cut a path out of the disintegrating building. Further ahead, Bluestreak seems to have run afoul of terrain trouble -- so Twin Twist reaches out to help! "C'mon, Streaks! It's high time we blow diz joynt!" Before Bumblebee can even react to Twin Twist's rampage, Rumble starts bringing the house down. Leaping to his feet, the minibot starts running for the exit at Twin Twist's urgings. Bluestreak manages to jerk his hand back before Sunder could take it for one of his trophies--that Sweep already had half of his chevron already, for goodness sake! The scuffle with Sunder has put some distance between himself and Twin Twist, so he barely seems to acknowledge the Wrecker. He hears Jazz shouting and sees the other Autobots getting out of the crumbling warehouse, and tries to run for the nearest exit. However, the building is already starting to come down at the gunner's location and a large chunk of debris slams into his back--right where Sunder had slashed him. He goes down and has enough time to shield his helm with one arm as more debris pelts his armoring. He is quickly buried as the warehouse collapses. And so, as the warehouse collaspses into rubble, Soundwave and co. make off for the horizon--well, Rumble is going to be lagging behind a bit. But hopefully the sissy Autobots will be too busy moaning and groaning about all the damage done to worry about that. Rumble stops his piledrivers, seeing the damage done already, and turns them into his regular arms long enough for Rumble to give a one-fingered salute to the Autobots, before running out the exit and flying off with the other Decepticons Rumble begins retreating, leaving itself vulnerable to parting shots from Green Cyber-Copter, Sunder, Bumblebee, Bluestreak, Twin Twist, Jazz, Payloader , Soundwave, B-1B Lancer, Autobot Hovercraft . As soon as the warehouse begins collapsing, Sunder figures it is time to split. So, he gets no trophy and no nice big juicy bite out of an Autobot. Well, not today, at least. Tomorrow is another day, however. Leaping into the air, Sunder transforms into a Sweepcraft. Sunder begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from Autobot Hovercraft . Jazz turns his head, as all the debris and dust extend out as the warehouse collapses. "Primus, no!" He yells and turns away, letting it all settle before approaching. Once it does, Jazz makes his way over to the rubble. "Call for support, we need to get this junk off of Bluestreak." Twin Twist aids Jazz by rifling through the collapsed building! Decepticon Message: 2/32.............Posted........Author Space Tile Super Sale!....Sat May 19....Fusillade ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ *Fusillade flicks to life on the screen, expression glib despite the impact damage on her left shoulder and cockpit, raising her hand, she flexes fingertalons* Five-fingered discounts are faaaaabulous! Last evening, Scrapper wanted us to go raid for energon, but I figured that the Despoiler, Conquest, and the other shuttle could use a little love, so I suggested that we go raid the space tile fabrication plant operating by Boeing Company in Palmdale. That's in southern California, so I figured it'd be a great to way also fulfill Galvatron's orders to piss off the UN. Scrapper, we'll get energon for you tonight, please don't turn me into a chair! ANYWAY... *she claps her hands together, and continues* Fulcrum, Scrapper, Soundwave, Buzzsaw, and I went in there, and of course, being where it was, Autobot response was. No EDC though. Again. Almost like they're holding off on purpose, you know? Jazz is back, and lead the Autobot charge against us. There was screaming about Wreckers from Roadbuster and Twin Twist, and Bumblebee, Bluestreak were there too. They did NOT hold back, either. Scrapper and I managed to load up and withdraw, but that last move by Twin Twist -- *she winces a bit, gesturing toward the impact mark* Where he threw Bumblebee at me cracked and chipped a substantial number of the tiles I had already stowed away. I'll have them in the repair bay, Scrapper, MSE, if any of you think they might be salvageable. And Rumble? Buzz around NCC is that you managed to bring the west warehouse in that complex down. Heck of a blow. Fusillade, out. *end* --End--